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AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Dan Neely2-Mar-21 2:48
Dan Neely2-Mar-21 2:48 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Owen Lawrence2-Mar-21 3:15
Owen Lawrence2-Mar-21 3:15 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Joan M2-Mar-21 3:30
professionalJoan M2-Mar-21 3:30 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Marc Clifton2-Mar-21 4:06
mvaMarc Clifton2-Mar-21 4:06 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Kiriander2-Mar-21 4:48
Kiriander2-Mar-21 4:48 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Steve Naidamast2-Mar-21 5:23
professionalSteve Naidamast2-Mar-21 5:23 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
mdowd652-Mar-21 6:13
mdowd652-Mar-21 6:13 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
trønderen2-Mar-21 6:15
trønderen2-Mar-21 6:15 
I've been living (and programming) long enough to see myriads of great solutions ... left behind. Lots of the problems that we wish had commonly accepted solutions have solutions - but not commonly accepted. At least not today. Maybe they were common, twenty or thirty years ago, but not today.

An example: The problem of changing APIs. OK, we got "interface definitions" - so make it "changing interface definitions". Every new library version comes with a dozen updated interface definitions, to cater for new, extended functionality. You must update your application, interface definition or not.

The majority of Win16 APIs were like LibFunc that became LibFuncEx (with a different argument list), then LibFuncExEx, ... There was (is?) at least one with five 'Ex'! But another subset of APIs took a single argument: A struct, the first member being the struct size, implying the number of arguments, followed by the arguments. The function can be extended without changing the API: Arguments for extended functionality is added at the end of the struct. Well, you might say that appending "optional" struct members is a change, but certainly a non-breaking one. It doesn't require caller code change. Not even a recompilation. If the new library function is handed a "short" struct, it knows to skip the functionality depending on the extra parameters.

A great way to reduce/avoid API changes! I follow it whenever I control the API. Here and there, I see APIs like that, but it is certainly not standard, The Way to Do It. Never touted in the programming courses and tutorials I have seen. You learn interface definitions; great for implementation independency with one specific set of arguments, but of no help with the next version.

When I suggest this approach for coworkers and programming friends, the most positive response is "Yeah, for a function with more than four arguments on the ARM, the compiler lays out code the way you say". Every programmer I know insist on having every single argument individually visible in parentheses after the function name, not as a list of struct members. And every single of them thing they have a godgiven right to change that argument list for every single version. "Just look at the .h file; there you'll see the arguments you must use!".

I have lived through dozens of similar ignored/forgotten techniques. Sometimes, I have to explain how we used to do it a couple decades ago, and they are truly surprised: Why don't we simply do it that way, then? Well... it just isn't fashionable to do it like that any more...

So my wish is that we learn to use the solutions that exist. Even if they weren't invented here. Even if you could write a Ph.D dissertation proving that in one of a million cases, the it is not a viable solution, and therefore we should forget it and rather switch to this new method proposed here!

The software bike shed is filled to the ceiling with reinvented wheels. The bad part is that many of them are not even round.
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Member 148572132-Mar-21 7:51
Member 148572132-Mar-21 7:51 
GeneralRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Chris Maunder2-Mar-21 14:00
cofounderChris Maunder2-Mar-21 14:00 
GeneralRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Owen Lawrence3-Mar-21 2:47
Owen Lawrence3-Mar-21 2:47 
GeneralRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Gary R. Wheeler6-Mar-21 14:33
Gary R. Wheeler6-Mar-21 14:33 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Mycroft Holmes2-Mar-21 11:46
professionalMycroft Holmes2-Mar-21 11:46 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Member 140926052-Mar-21 22:30
Member 140926052-Mar-21 22:30 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Matt McGuire3-Mar-21 5:23
professionalMatt McGuire3-Mar-21 5:23 
AnswerRe: What part of software development do you wish was "fixed"? Pin
Gary R. Wheeler6-Mar-21 14:31
Gary R. Wheeler6-Mar-21 14:31 
QuestionHas anyone used VisualGdb? Pin
honey the codewitch1-Mar-21 6:25
mvahoney the codewitch1-Mar-21 6:25 
AnswerRe: Has anyone used VisualGdb? Pin
Storm-blade1-Mar-21 6:34
professionalStorm-blade1-Mar-21 6:34 
JokeRe: Has anyone used VisualGdb? Pin
Slacker0071-Mar-21 8:13
professionalSlacker0071-Mar-21 8:13 
GeneralRe: Has anyone used VisualGdb? Pin
honey the codewitch1-Mar-21 10:23
mvahoney the codewitch1-Mar-21 10:23 
AnswerRe: Has anyone used VisualGdb? Pin
jrgrobinson2-Mar-21 2:23
jrgrobinson2-Mar-21 2:23 
GeneralRe: Has anyone used VisualGdb? Pin
honey the codewitch2-Mar-21 2:51
mvahoney the codewitch2-Mar-21 2:51 
AnswerRe: Has anyone used VisualGdb? Pin
Member 129243122-Mar-21 2:52
Member 129243122-Mar-21 2:52 
GeneralThought of the Day Pin
OriginalGriff1-Mar-21 4:39
mveOriginalGriff1-Mar-21 4:39 
GeneralRe: Thought of the Day Pin
jeron11-Mar-21 4:54
jeron11-Mar-21 4:54 

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